In order to improve your result in the IELTS test, both for speaking and writing, it is important to be aware of the ‘parts’ of speech that create sentences in English. It is commonly accepted that there are only 9* different parts of speech from which all sentences, phrases or utterances are made.
*Some schools believe that there are only 8 parts of speech, with articles being part of the adjective group.
The different parts of speech are as follows:
- nouns
- verbs
- adverbs
- adjectives
- articles
- pronouns
- prepositions
- conjunctions
- interjections
Understanding which groups words are in can also help you to break down sentences, making the passive skills (reading and listening) easier. Below is a table showing the different parts of speech and an example.
Parts of speech
Common parts of speech
| Part of speech | Common use | Example |
| Verb | to describe an action | He sat. |
| Noun | To describe a thing | He sat on the chair. |
| Adverb | To describe the verb | He slowly sat on the chair. |
| Adjective | To describe the noun | He slowly sat on the tall chair. |
| Pronoun | To talk about who | He slowly sat on the tall chair. |
| Preposition | To talk about where or when | He slowly sat on the tall chair. |
| Conjunction | Used to join ideas | He slowly sat on the tall chair but fell off. |
| Article | Used to give more information about the noun | He slowly sat on the tall chair but fell off. |
| Interjection | A short exclamation – not a full sentence | Ouch! He hit the floor. |
Improving your knowledge of English
Practical tips to build IELTS vocabulary
It is also useful to keep a vocabulary list and group words together that come from the same parts of speech.
For example:
adjectives – e.g. glamorous
You should try to also learn their antonyms and synonyms to build your vocabulary.
e.g. alluring, attractive (synonyms) – dowdy, plain (antonyms)
and think about their comparatives and superlatives e.g. – (adj) more glamorous (comparative) the most glamorous (superlative)
nouns – e.g. accommodation
(check spelling and think about articles etc) – uncountable, no ‘a’ or ‘an’
You should try to also learn their synonyms to build your vocabulary.
e.g. place of residence, dwelling, abode (synonyms)
verbs – e.g. drive
(and their past and participle forms);
drove, driven
prepositions – e.g. on
(with examples of their different uses),
e.g. on the sofa, but in an arm chair.
conjunctions – e.g. moreover
(with examples of use and punctuation)
Smoking is expensive; moreover, it is detrimental to health.
BOOST YOUR VOCABULARY! Here’s a glossary of key words from this post:
| Word (Part of Speech) | Definition | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Detrimental (adjective) | harmful or likely to cause damage | Smoking is expensive; moreover, it is detrimental to health. |
| Accommodation (noun) | a place to live or stay | Students must find cheap accommodation near the campus. |
| Participle (noun) | a verb form used as an adjective or to make perfect tenses | In “broken window”, broken is a past participle. |
| Comparative (adjective/noun) | the form used to compare two things (more …) | “More glamorous” is the comparative form of glamorous. |
| Superlative (adjective/noun) | the form used to show the highest degree (most …) | “The most glamorous” is the superlative form. |
| Uncountable (adjective) | cannot be counted with a/an and has no plural form | “Accommodation” is uncountable, so we don’t say “an accommodation”. |
| Interjection (noun) | a short word or phrase that shows strong feeling (not a full sentence) | “Ouch!” is an interjection when someone is hurt. |
| Conjunction (noun) | a word that joins words or ideas (and, but, or) | “But” is a conjunction in “He sat but fell.” |
| Preposition (noun) | a word that shows place, time, or relation (in, on, at) | He sat on the chair — “on” is a preposition. |
| Pronoun (noun) | a word that replaces a noun (he, she, they) | Instead of “John”, use he — “he” is a pronoun. |